MUSLIM HIP-HOP DANCER

Amirah Sackett is determined to cast off stereotypes and preconceptions of Muslim women and she does that in a powerful way.

Sackett is a hip-hop artist who uses dance, choreography and teaching to share her message.

On Sept. 27, she will perform at Williams Center in Easton as part of Lafayette College’s “Tapestries: Voices Within Contemporary Muslim Cultures,” a series exploring the arts of Muslim societies around the world.

Her concert includes the new solo work “Love Embraces All,” set to poetry by 13th-century Sufi mystic Rumi, with sound design by Chicago DJ Nevin Hersch. It explores the barriers in ourselves and the walls that others build around us. It’s a heartfelt appeal to always choose love.

A former curator of the B-Girl Be international festival of women in hip-hop, in 2011 Sackett founded the groundbreaking group We’re Muslim, Don’t Panic, performing hip-hop dances in traditional Muslim attire.

Sackett wears a hijab, a Muslim head covering, every day and dresses modestly.

Sackett also will begin a week-long artist-in-residency at Lafayette on Monday, which will include students from DeSales University and Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts. Some students will be cast in her concert.

The concert starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25; $6, students with ID.

Sackett will give a free lecture noon-1 p.m. Wednesday in Lafayette's Skillman Library, in the second-floor Gendebien Room. Lunch will be served on a first-come, first-served basis.

ART HOUSE THEATER DAY

On Sunday, Sept. 23, across the country and in the Lehigh Valley, art house theaters are calling attention to the cultural roles they play in communities for the third annual Art House Theater Day.

The day of special programming is organized by Art House Convergence, an international organization of independent, community movie theaters.

“Now, more than ever, the world needs thought-provoking, meaningful and life-changing art, and the venues in which to experience it. Art House Theater Day acknowledges the vibrant and multifaceted independent film culture that can only exist with the support of intrepid filmmakers, exhibitors and most importantly — audiences,” says Art House Theater Day co-director Gabriel Chicoine

Civic has organized a slate of short films by local filmmakers to screen before several showings of “The Wife,” a drama getting Oscar buzz that explores the difficult 40-year marriage of a woman played by Glenn Close and her author husband, played by Jonathan Pryce. Showings are at 1,4 and 7 p.m. at Civic Theatre514, 514 N. 19th St. Short films are by Brandon C. Lay, Living Proof Pictures; Alison Loeb; Courtney Therond, and Time To Back Out Productions. Tickets are $10; $8, students, seniors, military and matinees before 5 p.m. Info: civictheatre.com.

Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas at the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks in Bethlehem is showing two films Sunday as part of Art House Theater Day.

Screening at noon is the thriller “The Guilty,” a Sundance Audience Award-winner. In the Danish film (with English subtitles), a dispatcher answers an emergency call from a kidnapped woman. When the call is suddenly disconnected, the search for the woman begins. Tickets are $10; $8, students and seniors.

Screening at 7 p.m. is “Love, Gilda,” an intimate documentary about the “Saturday Night Live” comedian, who died in 1989 of ovarian cancer at age 42. Director Lisa Dapolito worked with the Radner estate to gain access to diaries and personal audio and video tapes, which allow Gilda to tell her own story.

Following the screening local comedians Kristi Curtis, Roya Hamdani, Cindy Marsh, Liz Russo, and Addyson Teal will discuss the film and their experiences as women in comedy.

Tickets are $12; $10, students and seniors, with $1 of every ticket to benefit the Cancer Support Community of the Greater Lehigh Valley. Info: steelstacks.org.

TIM DOREY

Iluminate performs Sept. 23 at the State Theatre.

Iluminate performs Sept. 23 at the State Theatre. (TIM DOREY)

ILUMINATE AT STATE THEATRE

It might seem overly dramatic to say that iLuminate will show you a light in the dark.

But that’s literally what you will see at 5 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 23, at the State Theatre in Easton, when the New York theatrical and technology based dance company performs.

ILuminate took off in 2011 after taking third place on the sixth season of the NBC-TV show “America’s Got Talent.”

Members of iLuminate wear dark suits covered in electroluminescent wire and LED lights to illustrate dance moves. The suits also flash to display effects or create stories.

Madge Owens (Abby Garza, left) is interrogated about boys by her little sister Millie (Katie McGlone) as they prepare for the annual neighborhood picnic in Act 1 DeSales University’s production of William Inge’s 'Picnic,' running Sept. 26 to Oct. 7 at the Labuda Center.

Madge Owens (Abby Garza, left) is interrogated about boys by her little sister Millie (Katie McGlone) as they prepare for the annual neighborhood picnic in Act 1 DeSales University’s production of William Inge’s 'Picnic,' running Sept. 26 to Oct. 7 at the Labuda Center. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

‘PICNIC’ AT DESALES

What happens when a handsome drifter shows up in a small town and upsets the quiet normal? Find out when Act 1 DeSales University Theatre opens its Main Stage season with William Inge’s classic comedy “Picnic,” running Sept. 26-Oct. 7.

The Pulitzer winner by the author of “Come Back Little Sheba” tells the story of a neighborhood of women preparing for a Labor Day picnic. The group include two middle-aged widows, the protective mother of two teen daughters, and a goodnatured woman who cares for her elderly mother. In the next 24 hours, hearts are broken and lives are changed as the drifter Hal’s charming yet dangerous animal vitality pits the longings of youth against the complacency of middle age.

Paul Newman made his Broadway debut in 1952 as Hal.

Directing is Steven Dennis, associate professor of theater. “The themes this play explores: choices and consequences, freedom, love and passion, loneliness — are every bit as vital to our world as when this play won the Pulitzer Prize,” he says.

Performances are at 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays and 9:45 a.m. Oct. 2. Talk with director and cast are Sept. 30 after the 2 p.m. performance and Oct. 2.

Tickets: $21, adults; $19, students and seniors on Tuesdays through Thursdays, and $25, adults; $23, students and seniors on Fridays through Sundays. Info: 610-282-3192, desales.edu/act1.